Thursday, October 15, 2009

Zoo Day!

This past Sunday was a free military admission day at the zoo. They also had face-painting and bouncy things for the kids to play on, clowns, music...all sorts of fun stuff! Alana and I haven't been to the zoo here since last year, so there was lots of new things to see. Angie and Jalen haven't been since OH last week :) We all went together this time, and enjoyed a beautiful day!

First stop, the face painting!

Butterfly...Gosh, I hope this washes off :)

Jalen and Alana holding hands and waiting in line to bounce!

They love each other!

Crazy picture of Alana in the bouncy house!

Time for a lunch break!

Riding the train

Alana was petting the goat :)

And feeding a different one...

They are dancing to "Just Dance" by Lady Gaga lol.

Alana tried to pick up Jalen, like all of her friends at school do to her.

Jalen's turn to pick up Alana

Maybe I can pick her up better from behind...
or at least stop her from choking :)

Jalen found something he could pick up :)

Alana got some too!

I was teasing Jalen, telling him he missed one :)

Just a few more...

I think our kids have a future in lawn maintenance!

Angie and I might have the only two kids in the world that go to the zoo and collect leaves! Hey, at least they were having fun doing it :) We also got to see lots of animals...the elephants, giraffes, the monkeys...all the creepy crawlies...the farm animals! The best part of the day was just getting some fresh air with two of our favorite people!

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Be Still...

I know I've promised a few of you a new post with pictures from our trip to the zoo on Sunday--and I will post those soon!!! I just wanted to share something with everyone tonight...It's an amazing testament of God's not-so-subtle way of reminding us that He is in control. And trust me folks, I can't even make up stuff that's this good!

First let me share a little bit of background for those of you who I don't talk to on a regular basis. Life has been wonderful in the Portas household lately. It has also been extremely busy for each of us. Alana is in school five days a week, I am taking six college classes PLUS volunteering at Alana's school, and Justin is in the Navy--enough said. On top of everything that is already on our plates, it is time for Justin to either re-enlist or get out of the Navy. We have been unsure about this next step. Justin wants out, but we know that this is not the best time for our family for that to happen. It's been weighing on us both...and most likely, consequently, Alana as well. The past week has been especially tough on Justin. He has been working strenuous, long hours despite his new position in cargo. We're talking major manual labor for 12-14 hours a day. He hasn't had a chance to call the detailer for order options, etc...and all the while he's been questioning what the future holds for him. We know what I'm doing, as far as a career. Alana is in Kindergarten, so we know what she's gonna be up to for the next 11 years or so. Justin doesn't quite know what he wants to be when he grows up, though :) He just knows it does not include retiring from the military. Justin and I have been very open with our communication about all of this. Last night, after a few rough days, we had another deep discussion. It was a sort of break-thru in that we both really accepted that we had to relinquish the control and realize it was gonna be alright no matter what. Justin said something that prompted me to say "We have to 'Be still'..." Then he repeated "Be still and know that I am God" a few times. He said that was his old mantra, and needed to become his new one--especially while at work.

Fast forward to today...Justin picks up his "Our Daily Bread" devotional book (you probably know what I'm referring to, but just in case you don't I've included graphics) :)

He opens it up and turns the page to today, Wednesday, October 14th. And this is what he saw...

The best part yet is what the bottom of the page reads...


Can I get an AMEN? Seriously. I told you this was good stuff! "God knows the future, so we are safe in His hands." Justin brought this home to me and I began humming the Twilight Zone theme...I mean, WOW. Justin went on to share that he finally knows that it doesn't matter if we don't know exactly what our future holds...because Someone does--and that Someone will keep us safe!

Peace, Love and Being Still

Thursday, October 8, 2009

A Month in the Life

I know, I know...It has been WAY too long since I last posted. In fact, it's been a month today! I am going to just make this into a mass post, probably all clumped together and confusing...kind of like my life the past month haha. No, life has been great! Life has also been busy, and we are getting used to our new routines. Alana has been more than amazing at school! She loves going every day. While most of us can't wait til Friday, Alana can't wait til Monday! She counts down the days til she gets to go back to school when it's the weekend. That makes life so much easier for me!

On her second day of school, we got this amazing cookie bouquet delivered to our doorstep! It was from none other than Grammy! She knows how to make us smile! I can't get over how cute these cookies were, and they tasted just as incredible...



Moving on...
Justin had an inspection last month, so he had to break down and actually BUY the new uniform. He doesn't have to wear this to work on a daily basis, so he has been putting it off for quite sometime. I just think he looks so cute so I thought I'd share...he will probably kill me later for this :)


Seriously is the BLUE camo supposed to make them blend in with the water?!
Next on my list of things I should've blogged about and didn't--Justin's birthday! My wonderful hubby turned 32 on the 17th. He actually had the day off, and Alana had an early-release day. Justin and I started off the day with a delicious breakfast at IHOP and then when we picked up Alana from school we continued our celebration. Alana and I sent Justin to "his room" upstairs and we made cupcakes.

Justin pretended like he didn't know what was going on ;)
Alana kept fibbing and telling him we were playing Mario World and he couldn't come downstairs because we didn't want him to see our secret tricks...

My favorites.

Kissy kissy

This is a typical Alana face...
She had just gotten a bath, so she had wet hair!

Alana took a picture of Daddy and Mommy

Self-portrait, we ALMOST got Alana's whole face in.
Justin's tongue took up too much :)

Alana got her haircut
Ok, so let me explain why I took so many pictures of Alana dressed for school. I love my child to death. I could not live without her. I could, however, do without her crazy restrictions on what she will and will not wear. She is quite stubborn and opinionated, but as I've learned in my Developmental Psychology class--she is also quite normal. She would only wear 2 skirts for the first few weeks of school...In a way, it was frustrating. In another way, I didn't care. It just made for lots of loads of laundry to make sure they were clean. Then, it got cold. I finally told Alana that she HAD to wear pants to school. It was amazing. She wore them without much of a fuss, and I took a picture for proof...
First day wearing jeans to school :)
Second day wearing pants...
And this days was even extra special because she wore those pink converse I bought her in Nashville...the ones she has not worn ONCE. She put up a fight and I told her she didn't have to wear them, that I didn't care...Then she said "Ok, I'll wear them!" Grrrr...

Silliness at it's best.
My own semester in school has been amazing as well. I am super excited about what the future holds for me. I feel like I am finally getting somewhere with my education. I am trying to make straight A's to get into a HIGHLY competitive program at my school...I'm talking only 15 people get in each year. So it's pretty demanding. That, and I have to learn things like this:
Justin was gone for a week this month, and hopefully he will be home for the rest of October before he has to go out for about a month...We miss him when he's gone. We also miss the rest of our family.
Alana ichatting with Grammy and Liam
Can you tell she was eating a brownie?
I took this and she said, "Mommy, I look like I don't have some of my teeth!"
Then I told her if she eats brownies and doesn't brush them, she won't!

Another success in the clothing department...These jeans we bought in Nashville about 4 months ago and she wouldn't even put them on. I told her they make her look tall...
Especially tall, when she's on her tippy toes!

My sweetness.
Alana is at school...Justin is at work...I am actually caught up on my own schoolwork. That's why I am blogging. I will soon return to my desk, where I spend the bulk of my time these days...I bought this one, and put it in the "dining" room so my butt didn't permanently indent the place I was sitting on the couch :)

Justin bought me this most comfortable chair, too!!!
I'm sorry that I have slacked on keeping everyone updated! I will do my best to post more regularly again. I am almost halfway through the semester, and Justin just got a new job in cargo. He works Monday through Friday, 7:30-he gets done...which is usually quite early. He is going to look at orders today, so I am kind of nervous. Please pray that God shows us what's next...

Peace, Love and Blogging Goulash.